He may have been the “Cinderella Man” but James J. Braddock never confused a boxing gym with the Ball, and surely never arrived in a carriage. Braddock, a tough Irish kid from the streets of West New York, won the light heavyweight amateur crown of New Jersey and turned pro in the late ‘20s at age 21. He would not be knocked off his feet in 80 pro fights, and be counted out only once (a TKO), and though he was a plodding kind of fighter he was also a guy who could obliterate you with one right hook. With his rough edges he never really was given title consideration -- the one time he did, in ‘29, he lost to light-heavyweight champ Tommy Loughran -- and by the time the Depression rolled around and, nearly broke, he had to take a job as a longshoreman, many boxing mavens disregarded him as a plodding softie, a guy who liked to carouse in bars as much as get into the ring. However, Braddock’s fire would be stoked in the gym. Under the tutelage of his trainer, Doc Cobb, Braddock would enter Stillman’s Gym at 919 Eighth Avenue and don these amazing chocolate brown leather gloves that he kept in his private locker there. The gloves -- the centerpiece of this tremendous collection of arcane Braddock items -- were firmly laced when he stepped into the ring and pounded sparring partners, keeping himself primed for his eventual upsets of John “Corn” Griffith and John Henry Lewis, leading to another title shot, as a massive underdog against Max Baer on June 13, 1935. You know what happened there. If not, watch the movie. But what we never have seen are the instruments that stoked that fire in the gym. Now, seeing them is a revelation. Braddock laid a world of pain on those sparring partners and the heavy bag with these babies that he gave to his manager Barney Doyle and kept in Doyle’s family for years. Unmistakable are the areas of heavy usage caused by contact with sparring partners’ faces, on the sweet spots. There are also gouge marks closer to the wrists and one can almost feel the sweat pouring onto them that left the stains on the interior padding. Remember, too, that Braddock went all out with these gloves even though he’d suffered a broken hand early in his career. The man didn’t hold back. Though used to the point of shredding, the gloves are still supple and buttery soft. What a find! But no less so than the smaller training gloves that fit snugly onto his hands when he had at the speed bag. These lightweight brown leather gloves have “Alex Taylor Athletic Supplies Co.” labels on the outer wrist areas and black retaining straps on the pam side. Also included is the actual ring bell used for his sparring rounds, a great sepia-toned 8 x10” of Braddock in the gym making a tight fist with his taped hand, and a newspaper article about Barney Doyle and his relationship with Braddock. These museum-worthy pieces come with a LOA from Barney Doye’s niece.